Kiregire
by parma-violets
Summary: A collection of fluffy SxS drabbles, using the names of the Clow Cards as the themes. Mostly set postcanon. NOW UP: Rain
1. Windy

**Kiregire**

**A/N: **Hey! I'm back with another series of drabbles … the majority of which will be far cuter and fluffier than _One Week_, which by the end of it was starting to depress even me.

This story will hopefully consist of fifty-five (ish) drabbles or one-shots, and the theme of each one will be … the name of a Clow Card. It seems like such an obvious idea; I can't believe no one else has done it (that I've found, anyway). The order in which each card appears follows the order in which Sakura captured them (i.e. Windy is first, Fly will be second, etc). I have ideas for about half of the chapters. But seeing as the themes will be of no surprise to anyone, feel free to throw in any ideas, suggestions or requests!

One additional note: the title (if I've done my research properly) translates as 'pieces' or 'fragments', which I thought fit because it the fic consists of fragments of Sakura and Syaoran's lives. Even more perfectly, the second definition of the word is 'disconnected', which is what most of these drabbles will be. I may change the title if I find a better one though … again, suggestions are welcomed!

**One – Windy**

Sakura drew the blanket around her a little tighter, watching the news report on the television with wide eyes. There was a feature on about a little boy who had been crushed to death when a tree had fallen onto him, uprooted by the ridiculously strong winds that had been battering Tomoeda over the past few days.

Although nothing graphic was being shown (it was only seven o'clock, after all), Sakura felt sick to her stomach.

She switched off the television, only to find that the howling outside seemed even louder without any other sounds to compete with it. In an effort to distract herself, Sakura got to her feet and wandered into the kitchen, set on making some hot chocolate to cheer herself up.

Wind was nothing to be frightened of, although she had to keep reminding herself of that fact. After all, she'd used Windy to her own advantage several times before. Those winds were gentle, and soothing, and although they could be used to attack Sakura rarely did so, and certainly she had never been on the receiving end of the darker side of Windy. These winds, however – natural winds that had at their worst exceeded ninety kilometres an hour – scared her more than she wanted to admit.

But what really scared her was that Syaoran was out in them.

It had been her fault, really. Their friends had planned to go on a picnic that day, and each of them spent time carefully preparing food to bring along, hoping that the current gale would recede in time for them to enjoy their day out. It didn't, obviously, and after a few minutes in the park where they had to shout to make themselves heard and lean into the wind in order to stay upright, the group quickly realised that the picnic wasn't going to happen and hurriedly returned to take shelter in their own homes.

It had been at that point when a particularly strong gust of wind had whipped Sakura's hat clean off her head and flung it into nothingness.

She had been upset, of course – it was a very nice hat that had cost a fair bit of money – but she never expected Syaoran to charge off after it with a single minded determination to find it and return it to its owner, or die trying.

He was so silly sometimes.

Sakura shook her head as she poured milk into a saucepan and set it on the stove to heat. It was only a hat – she knew that, and she was prepared to accept its loss. But Syaoran never liked seeing her unhappy.

She loved that about him.

A particularly nasty roar sounded from outside, and she winced thinking about how frightening it must be to be out in those winds. She knew he was still out there – he'd call her if he decided to go home to stop her worrying.

Didn't he realise that she was a hundred times more worried about him being outside right now that about losing her stupid hat?

Sakura shivered; she was cold, but she was reluctant to change her current attire. She'd recently commandeered an old shirt of her boyfriend's, which she had coupled with thick fuzzy socks to complete the look. It wasn't terribly warm, but it smelled just like him, and she was reluctant to let go of that right now.

_Please be okay, please be okay …_

It was crazy, when she thought about it. Syaoran wasn't one of the overly romantic types – she knew he'd never write her poetry or spell out 'I love you' in lighted candles outside her window. He wasn't particularly open with his emotions, and never said some of the slightly sappy things her friend's partners were prone to. But at the same time, Sakura knew he'd go to the end of the earth for her.

Even for a stupid hat.

As she was spooning powdered chocolate into her mug, Sakura heard someone knocking at the door. She dropped the spoon onto the counter with a noisy clatter and hurried out into the hall, hoping against hope that he'd be standing at her door.

He was. He looked as if he'd been battered every which way; his face and hands were red from cold and his hair was sticking up in an alarming manner.

He was also empty handed.

"I looked everywhere," he said dejectedly, shoving his freezing hands deep down into his jeans pocket. "I couldn't find it – I'm so sorry, Sakura."

Sakura looked at him, unable to believe how depressed he looked at the idea of disappointing her. In minutes, she had jumped into his arms, standing on her porch in nothing but his shirt as the winds roared around them.

"You silly thing," she sighed affectionately, trying in vain to smooth his hair down. "It was only a hat."

"As soon as these winds die down, I'll use a tracking spell to find it, I promise," Syaoran said, refusing to admit defeat.

She laughed, hugging him tighter to her and feeling warmth spread throughout her body. "I don't _need _the hat," she insisted, looking up at him adoringly. "But it means the world to me that you tried."

Syaoran shrugged, turning bashful as he always did when he was caught showing just how much in love he was. "It's not a big deal."

"It's a huge deal," Sakura sighed, shivering slightly as the winds picked up further.

"You must be freezing," Syaoran commented, rubbing her arms in an attempt to warm her. "You should get on inside – I'll see you tomorrow."

She caught his hand before he could leave, tugging him towards her front door expectantly. "Why don't you come inside and warm up? I'm making hot chocolate."

Sakura felt decidedly better once she had her boyfriend inside the house – knowing that he was no longer in danger (and also that he was there to protect her in case anything went wrong) made the wind seem a lot less scary. In truth, there was something decidedly nice about snuggling up with your beloved, knowing you were safe from the storm outside.

Syaoran never found Sakura's hat. She forgave him, though.

**A/N:** I found it SO HARD to come up with an idea for Windy, which was annoying because it was the first one and I really wanted to get this started – plus it's always important for a first chapter to start a story off well. This was all I could think of, though. I have some better ideas for the upcoming chapters, I promise!

**Next chapter:** Fly


	2. Fly

**Kiregire**

**A/N:** Here's another one for you. I'm starting to wonder if I've bitten off more than I can chew … 50 drabbles … but I'm determined to see this through. The idea's been scurrying round my head for too long not to make a decent go of it. It will be done … though slowly!

When it comes to the ages of the characters … for the most part, I deliberately won't be specifying them, unless I particularly want or need to, OR if the scene takes place in a canon setting (like this one). That way the reader can picture them as and how they want. Generally I see them as being late teens/early twenties for the majority of the fics. This one takes place in the Sakura Card arc, after the conversion of Fly but before the confrontation with Eriol.

And lastly, huge, huge thanks to **Therese Delacoeur** for the idea for this chapter! As always, feel free to suggest any ideas for any of the chapters!

**Two – Fly**

Li Syaoran looked up in pure horror as Sakura's body sped towards the ground, her white wings stretched out behind her.

"_Be careful!"_ he roared at the top of his lungs, before his instincts got the better of him. He raised his sword (which had been ready in his hands all night in case it was needed), slammed it into an ofuda and called, "_Fuuka Shourai!_" Wind spilled out of the sword and raced upwards, encasing the body of Kinomoto Sakura and lowering her gently to the ground.

"Are you all right?" Syaoran yelled as he ran over to her.

Sakura turned her head towards him and giggled. "Li-kun, I was fine! I had it under control."

Syaoran blushed, realising he may have very slightly overreacted. With her it was a common problem.

"It didn't look like it."

"I promise!" she said, her eyes wide and earnest. "I would've stopped before I hit the ground – Kero-chan says I need to learn how to stop at short notice."

"The _stuffed animal _–" He raised his voice so he could be sure that Kero would hear him. "– Doesn't have a clue what he's talking about!"

"Aw, what's up kid?" the guardian taunted. "Did we scare you?"

Syaoran rounded on him. "Will you PACK IT IN?!"

"What are you whining about, brat?" Kero demanded. "She has to learn!"

"She doesn't need to learn how to do some weird type of airborne cannonballing!"

"It's a useful skill!"

"What, like playing video games and eating until you're sick?"

Kero puffed up indignantly. "I do plenty of useful things, gaki!"

"Name one!"

"Teaching my mistress how to fly!"

"CANNONBALL!"

"IT'S THE SAME THING!"

"Guys, stop!" Sakura cried, looking from one to the other with wide eyes. "It's not worth fighting over something so silly – Li-kun, I promise I was okay. But thank you. For worrying about me."

He flushed bright red, and was fully aware of the stupid plushie gloating over how easily he had been flustered.

"Kero-chan!" Sakura snapped, and the smug smile fell off his face. Once she had his attention, Sakura smiled at him. "Why don't you do another lap of the park – show me how it's done while I take a break?"

It was a lame excuse, but the guardian's vanity took over. "Absolutely!" he cried, before taking off and starting to loop through the air in a series of complex manoeuvres.

Sakura giggled quietly. "He's such a show off …"

She looked over at Syaoran, who still had the remnants of a blush lingering about his cheeks. "I'm sorry I scared you."

"Y-Y-You didn't!" he insisted hotly. "I just – I mean I …"

Sakura beamed. "I guess it's just your instincts, huh? You see a person falling and so you try to save them." She sighed wistfully. "You're such a good person."

He knew he wouldn't be able to open his mouth without saying something ridiculous, so he kept his lips pressed firmly together.

"It makes you nervous, doesn't it? When I fly?"

"What makes you say that?" he mumbled.

Sakura shrugged. "I don't know. I just remember you never really liked getting on the staff that much – and all night we've been out here you've been on edge."

"That's … I mean …" Syaoran fumbled desperately for an excuse. "We're in a park at two in the morning using magic. Of course I'm on edge – what if someone sees us?"

She laughed again. "You know they won't – I've put Shield up around the whole area."

He had nothing to say to that.

"It's okay, I promise," Sakura said softly, taking his hand and twining her fingers between his. "Fly would never let me fall."

Syaoran knew that was true, but it didn't stop him worrying. "I've never flown before," he confessed. "It's not one of my skills. I don't know, it just doesn't look … stable." He sounded like an idiot – the feel of her hand in his was distracting him.

"It's not stable," she agreed, "But that doesn't mean I'm not safe."

"I know."

"You don't have to stay," she continued shyly. "I'd hate to think I was making you nervous or uncomfortable. And it's late … and I'd be okay here with Kero-chan."

"I'm fine," Syaoran said abruptly, refusing to even consider leaving her alone late at night with nothing but that stuffed animal for protection.

They sat together in silence for a while before Sakura shifted, twisting to look at his face. "Why don't you give it a try? I know Fly would lend you wings if I asked her – the cards all like you very much!"

For some reason this announcement embarrassed him further, and his shifted awkwardly. "Um, I don't think – I mean, I'd rather not."

"Okay," she replied simply. She'd never push him. "One day, though?"

"One day," he promised, his desire to make her happy winning over his embarrassment.

He was rewarded with one of her best smiles, before the sun guardian came careening up to them.

"Did ya see me, Sakura? Huh, huh, didya?"

Syaoran was reminded forcefully of the five-year-olds that yelled at their mothers from the tops of slides and diving boards.

"I saw you, Kero-chan," she soothed him.

"Awesome!" he cried. "So, let's go again, huh?"

And so Syaoran resigned himself to standing on the sidelines, his sword held at the ready as he watched her climb higher and higher in the sky.

Fly would never let her fall. And neither would he.

**A/N:** I think I poisoned myself with my own sap …

**Next chapter:** Shadow


	3. Shadow

**Kiregire**

**A/N:** I've been neglecting this lately, haven't I? Void's been sapping my strength! Anyway, here's No. 3, and hopefully there should be some more on the way fairly soon!

**Disclaimer:** I somehow forgot to put one in the first chapter –slaps hand– bad parma-chan! Anyway, I'm sure you all guessed by yourselves, but oddly enough I don't own CCS. Instead I bow to the wonder that is CLAMP.

**Three – Shadow**

It was funny how something as simple as a trip to the kitchen could become so much scarier at night.

When you'd lived somewhere long enough, you tended to get used to the building, and Sakura had known every night-time sound and image of her childhood home off by heart. She knew which floorboards creaked, the noise the cistern made when it started up, the shapes that the shadows from the plants and the tables and the shelves made on the floor.

But this was a completely new environment.

As of last week, Kinomoto Sakura had packed up everything she owned and moved it into her boyfriend's shiny, modern penthouse apartment in the middle of Tokyo. She loved living there, of course she did – but she'd yet to familiarise herself with the environment at night (probably because she and Syaoran had been engaged in other activities).

Right now, she was scared stiff. There was a horrible groaning noise coming from the airing cupboard, and her overactive imagination immediately envisioned a trapped ghost in there, moaning in frustration as it tried to escape. An odd squeaking noise had started somewhere (she wasn't sure where), and that instantly because an axe-wielding maniac, coming closer and closer to her with each step. And worst of all was the shadows – the strange, unnatural shapes that spilled across the floor and took on the forms of spirits, killers and monsters – at least to her mind. Some of them even _moved_.

She'd never gotten over her fear of ghosts, no matter how old she was. And unfortunately it caused every dark, unfamiliar environment to turn into a haunted house.

Okay. She had to suck it up. She lived here now, and there was nothing to be scared of. She was the Card Mistress; she was powerful and perfectly capable of protecting herself. And all she wanted was a stupid glass of water.

Bravely Sakura soldiered on towards the kitchen and, resolutely ignoring the strange humming sound coming from the room, she pushed open the door.

To her horror, she saw an eerie green light spilling across the floor, and she clapped her hand to her mouth to stifle a scream. She turned away, leaning against the fridge and breathing heavily. It was all right – it was probably just a weird night light or something that Syaoran had installed. Nothing to worry about.

She turned around and headed straight for the cupboard where the glasses were kept. Then suddenly, out of the blue, the coffee machine turned on by itself.

Sakura lost her head, opening her mouth and screaming at the top of her lungs.

She lunged for the cutlery drawer, fumbling for a weapon and raising it in self defence – just as the lights clicked on.

"Sakura, what on earth's going on?"

She turned wide eyes on her boyfriend. "There's a ghost in this apartment!" she cried frantically.

Syaoran raised his eyebrows. "Are you're planning on attacking it with a spoon?"

Sakura looked up to see that in the darkness she had grabbed a spoon, rather than the knife she had been aiming for. She blushed, throwing the weapon to the side. "I'm telling you, there's something here!"

"Sakura," Syaoran said soothingly, "Do you honestly think I'd have you come and live in a haunted apartment?"

"Well … maybe not on purpose," she mumbled, wrapping her arms around his waist and burying her face into his chest. "But there _is _something unnatural here. When I came in there was this horrible green light, and then something turned the coffee machine on!"

"Sakura."

She looked up to see Syaoran repressing a smile, as he turned her around to face the coffee machine. "It's on an automatic timer – it turns itself on at four in the morning. And the green light came from the digital thermostat; the display lights up when it's dark."

Sakura blushed furiously. "Oh."

She frowned slightly, feeling Syaoran's eyes on her as she grabbed a glass and moved to the sink. She felt more than a little silly now, and so she quickly got her water and turned the lights off, giving the room one more suspicious glance in the light from the streetlamps outside to check that nothing was awry.

A shadow suddenly crossed the window, and Sakura screamed, dropping her glass onto the floor.

"Sakura!" Syaoran cried in shock. "What's the matter –?"

"I told you!" she cried hysterically. "There's something outside the window! I knew it, I knew something was wrong here! It's probably a serial killer –"

"We're on the sixth floor," Syaoran cut in.

"A ghost then!" Sakura wailed, clinging to him. "There's a ghost outside the apartment!"

"Ghosts don't have shadows," Syaoran informed her, rubbing her back soothingly. "Birds, however, do."

Sakura looked up at him sheepishly. "That was a bird?"

He nodded. "Very much so."

"Right," she said slowly. "I'll just … clean up this glass, then."

Sakura hurriedly swept up the glass and disposed of it, her cheeks flaming red as Syaoran handed her a new glass of water and led her back to the bedroom. To her consternation she could feel Syaoran's chest shaking slightly, and she gaped up at him accusingly. "Are you _laughing_ at me?"

"No," he replied, his face completely straight.

But Sakura knew him, and she pouted sulkily. "Yes you are!"

"I'm sorry," Syaoran apologised, smiling slightly. "But it was funny."

"I don't see how me being scared is funny," she retorted, gulping down the water and getting into bed.

"It's not," he assured her. "You being scared of a coffee machine and a bird, however, is pretty funny."

Sakura flushed, pulling the covers up over her head and mumbling, "I didn't _know _that's what they were …"

Syaoran grinned, tugging the blanket down again and kissing the top of her head. "What's made you so jumpy, huh?"

She shrugged. "I don't know. I guess I'm just … not used to the apartment yet."

Syaoran's face fell. "Do you regret moving in here?"

"No!" she cried, looking horrified. "Of course not! I just need to get used to it, that's all!"

"Do you want me to get a new coffee machine?" he offered. "I can get a new one, and I'll replace the thermostat and get some blinds … we could even move to a new apartment if you prefer …"

Sakura was giggling now, and she wrapped her arms around his neck, kissing the tip of his nose affectionately. "No, silly! The apartment's fine … I'm just being a scaredy-cat."

Syaoran smiled – only Sakura would still use words like 'scaredy-cat'.

"I told you," she continued, lying on top of him and snuggling into the blankets. "It just needs some getting used to. Besides … I have nothing to be scared of."

"Right," Syaoran agreed absently. "I mean, you have the cards, and even your own guardians –"

"I have you," Sakura interrupted, absently kissing his shoulder before closing her eyes. "I know you'll keep the shadows away for me."

"Mmmm …" he hummed, trying to sound indifferent as he pulled her closer.

The next day, Sakura came home from work to find new blinds in the kitchen windows, the coffee machine in the bin, and a workman installing a new thermostat.

**Next chapter:** Watery


	4. Watery

**Kiregire**

**A/N:** Well, this is a little risky. I mean, it's not, but it is for someone like me, who's so … vanilla, for lack of a better word. But never mind. We all need to branch out a little, ne? And never fear, I am working on Void, I promise … and also on a spin-off from Direction that will not get out of my brain …

**Warning:** Nothing huge to worry about, but there is nudity in this one and allusions to S-E-X. So I'd suggest very small children and those prone to nosebleeds should maybe give this a miss. The rest of you enjoy XD

**Four – Watery**

Sakura hummed happily to herself, joining in with the little waterproof radio that was stuck to the shower wall. She was going to be late – again – but it was such a regular occurrence that she somehow couldn't bring herself to be that worried.

After doing a strange sort of flourish with her loofah, she reached up to the little shelf for her shampoo … which wasn't there.

Sakura pouted, not particularly wanting to fetch it from her bedroom and drip water all over the carpet in the process. So she turned down the radio, stuck her head out of the shower door and called, "Syaoran! Can you bring my shampoo in here for me?"

"Which shampoo?" came the somewhat grumpy reply.

"The … straightening one," Sakura said after careful consideration. "The pale green bottle – but not the glittery green because that's serum!"

It wasn't like she had that many bottles.

Problem solved, Sakura turned the radio back up and continued to sing until Syaoran entered the bathroom. She beamed, opening the shower door. "Oooh, thank you!" she said cheerfully, reaching for the bottle – then frowning when she realised that Syaoran had carefully turned his head away from her. "Syaoran?"

"Is it the right one?" he asked bluntly, refusing to turn his head.

"Um … yes," she said slowly, seeing that the tips of his ears had turned bright red. "Uh – is everything okay?"

"Fine," Syaoran replied, turning on his heel and virtually sprinting out of the door, leaving it wide open in his haste to get away.

Sakura scowled, getting back in the shower and beginning to lather up her hair. For some reason she felt a bit annoyed – why on earth couldn't he just look at her? They lived together now; surely they should be over blushing and stuttering when they saw each other naked? It wasn't like he hadn't seen it before – he had, plenty of times. She frowned, looking down at herself. Maybe he didn't _want _to look – maybe he could only be near her with the lights off or something …

She rolled her eyes – now she was being ridiculous.

Maybe he'd just been distracted, thinking about his big contract or something. It might not have anything to do with her at all. This required further investigation …

**xxx**

"Syaoran!" Sakura called the next morning, sticking her head out of the shower door. "I forgot my shower gel – can you bring it in for me?"

A pause. "Can't you just use mine?"

She pouted. "Yours smells all … mannish. I like mine!"

She could have sworn she heard him curse, before he almost stomped into the bathroom and thrust her shower gel at her – once again keeping his eyes carefully averted.

Sakura frowned. This was bugging her – more than it probably should, if she would admit it. But she was still determined to snap him out of it.

**xxx**

"Syaoran!"

The cursing started before she'd even asked anything, and Sakura felt a sense of perverse satisfaction at being able to get under his skin. There was something immensely fulfilling about ruffling her usually calm and stoic boyfriend.

"I've forgotten my towel!" she sang happily, her voice as light and innocent as she knew how to make it. "Can you just run one in for me?"

"But there are –"

"I put all the ones in the bathroom in the laundry yesterday," she cut him off. "… Please?"

Once again he came in, eyes averted. This time she was standing on the shower mat, completely naked, almost _daring _him not to look at her.

Sakura watched in annoyance as his mouth dropped open and he flared bright red, but his eyes quickly returned to being ever so firmly fixed on the ceiling. He shoved the towel at her, before hurrying out again as fast as he could go.

Okay. Time for drastic action.

**xxx**

Sakura could hear the shower running in the bathroom, and she grinned somewhat evilly (at least for her). She waited a few minutes until she could be sure that he was very much in the shower, before stripping off her clothes and letting herself into the bathroom.

When she wrenched the shower door open and stepped inside, Syaoran yelped and dropped the soap. Sakura giggled slightly, retrieving it and setting it on the little shelf.

"Why do I make you so nervous?" she asked him teasingly, casually leaning against the shower wall and openly looking him up and down, watching as he turned bright red.

"You don't," Syaoran denied, rubbing the back of his neck self-consciously.

Sakura scoffed. "That's why you haven't been able to look at me these last mornings when I've had you come in here?"

His jaw dropped. "You did that _on purpose?"_

She blushed, realising now that her actions may have been a little childish. "I just want you to stop being so shy!" she pleaded, looking up at him with wide eyes. "I mean, we live together now, we're adults – you're allowed to look at me. I _want_ you to look at me."

Syaoran smiled slightly. "I'm looking at you now, aren't I?"

She shrugged.

"Did it ever occur to you," Syaoran said slowly, kissing her forehead, "That maybe the reason I didn't look was because you have a habit of showering at eight o'clock, right before I have to leave for work?"

Sakura gave him an odd look. "So?"

"So …" He sighed, shaking his head. "This past week I've been working on that contract, and I certainly couldn't afford any … detours that would have made me late."

"You mean – oh." She blushed, finally understanding. "But I mean … surely you have enough self-control to be able to just look at me without … that!"

Syaoran laughed. "I don't think you fully appreciate how much I react to you. Especially when you're all wet from the shower."

Sakura pouted childishly. "You made me feel unattractive!"

"Oh really?" he raised his eyebrows, before starting to kiss down her neck. "Well then, I'd say I have a lot of making up to do, don't I?"

"Most definitely," Sakura agreed, gasping as he hit a sensitive spot behind her ear.

"You see?" Syaoran grinned, pinning her up against the shower wall. "This is why it's so much more sensible to shower in the evening, like I do."

Sakura smiled back. "We have all night."

**Next chapter:** Rain


	5. Rain

**Kiregire**

**A/N:** I've tried to steer clear of the slightly cliché depressing/angsty/sad rain fics, coz you know … I have to be awkward.

_Void _is coming. That is all.

**Five – Rain**

"Y'know, my 'kaa-san met Otou-san when she fell out of a tree."

Syaoran raised his eyes to heaven and prayed for strength. Usually this topic required a certain amount of sensitivity and understanding – not his strong suit, certainly, but he'd always try his best for Sakura – but right now he knew it would be completely wasted on her.

"Yes, I know," he said bluntly, folding his arms across his chest and glaring upwards. "Now get down here before I make you."

Sakura squealed with laughter as though he'd said something hilarious, before wrapping both her legs around the branch she was sitting on and rolling so she was hanging upside down.

"Sakura!"

She continued to giggle like a small child, wiping away the soaked bangs that had stuck to her face so that they hung limply with the rest of her hair. "Isn't this cool?"

"No. This is not in any way cool," Syaoran ground out, unsure if he was more irritated or worried that she was going to fall. "Come down from there."

"S'okay!" Sakura yelled, and Syaoran worriedly checked the nearby houses for signs of angry residents. "I'm a great gymnast!"

"Only when you haven't ingested enough alcohol to floor a two-hundred-pound sailor," Syaoran grumbled, stalking over to the trunk so that he was at least standing underneath her.

"_That … _wasn't my fault," she slurred, starting to swing back and forth. "I was being very sensible. Just because I lost at Ring of Fire …"

"You should have said no!" Syaoran sighed. "Do you know what was in that pint glass? Vodka, beer, wine … I'm pretty sure I saw someone slip some absinthe in there …"

"That would explain a lot," Sakura said seriously, before starting to laugh again.

"Sakura. It is wet and cold and windy," Syaoran huffed. "Will you please come down so we can go home?"

"I love home," she sighed happily. "I love home and my friends and Kero-chan and even Touya-nii-chan …"

"Yes, that's lovely, but –"

"You know what I love best?"

"Going home to bed?" he asked without much hope.

"Nope! You!"

And with that she let go of the branch, tumbling down right on top of him.

Syaoran winced as he crashed into tarmac, right into a puddle that began to seep through the back of his very expensive jacket. Sakura only found this funnier, and she perched on his stomach laughing uproariously as Syaoran rubbed the back of his head.

"See, this is what happened!" she giggled. "And then 'tou-san said, 'I thought an angel had fallen from the sky'!"

"Well, I'd hardly call you an angel right now," Syaoran grumbled, trying to sit up.

Sakura threw her arms around his neck, and the momentum set him flying back to the ground again. "Really?" she asked, sticking her lower lip out in a petulant pout.

"Really," he huffed. "Now let me up!"

"A devil then, maybe?" she said, looking at him with a sultry confidence he was pretty sure she'd be too shy to attempt whilst sober.

"No," he cried quickly, feeling his cheeks warm up. "I-I-I didn't mean … of course, you are an angel usually, but …"

"But not right now?" she asked, gently tracing a drop of water down his jaw line.

"Sakura. Stop it."

"Don't you love me?"

Syaoran sighed. "Of course I do. You know I do. And it's _because _I love you that I'm trying to get you home before you catch pneumonia or throw yourself out of a tree again."

"It's raining," Sakura announced.

"Yes. I know it's raining," he agreed with forced patience. "And that's exactly why –"

She was off him in a flash, twirling around in circles and jumping into the pools of water in the road.

"What are you doing?" Syaoran groaned, scrambling to his feet.

"This is what you do when it rains, silly!" Sakura giggled. "You have to dance and jump in every puddle that you see! When I was little I used to put on my welly boots and my rain coat – it had frogs on it – and I'd dance for hours and hours …"

"Sakura," he tried again, quickly grabbing her and picking her up before setting her safely on the pavement. "You're in four inch heels. And a skirt that quite frankly looks more like a belt."

"Tomoyo-chan picked it."

"Why does that not surprise me?"

"You don't like it?" Sakura asked sadly. "She said you would. She said now I'm at university I should dress more … _adult_, was the word she used."

"Yes, well, Daidouji needs to stop using you as her personal oversized Barbie doll," Syaoran retorted, wrapping his arm around his girlfriend's shoulders and gently steering her in the direction of their block of student flats. "Now come on, let's go home and –"

He was cut off by her jumping into the ankle-deep water by a blocked gutter, kicking it in all directions and shrieking with laughter.

"Sakura!"

"What?" she laughed happily. "Didn't you ever jump in puddles when you were little?"

"No – never. Now just come up onto the pavement –"

"Never?"

Syaoran sighed. "No, it wasn't seemly. Now come on –"

She reached for his outstretched hand – and pulled him straight into the puddle with her.

Syaoran groaned as the rainwater quickly filled his posh Italian leather shoes, turning his socks cold and clammy and sending a shiver up his spine. "That's just … great."

"Come on!" Sakura laughed, jumping up and down and clapping. "Dance with me!"

He smiled despite himself, unable to retain his stern face when she looked that cute. "There's no music," he pointed out, but she grabbed his hands anyway and started swinging him round in a circle.

"We don't need music!" she shouted, wrapping her arms round his neck and kissing his nose. "Or – oooh! I could get Song to do something!"

Syaoran lunged for her hands as she reached for the key at her neck, firmly trapping them at her sides. "No. No magic. Absolutely not."

"Oh, come ooooonnn!" Sakura whined as Syaoran proceeded to pick her up and set her on dry ground again. "Just a little bit."

"No."

"One song. Oh please, I was so looking forward to dancing tonight!"

"We would have if you'd been sober enough to make it into the club."

Sakura frowned. "Was I not?"

"No," Syaoran sighed. "You refused to get into a cab and ran off down the road."

"Oops," she said, not looking the slightest bit sorry.

"Exactly," Syaoran said firmly. "Which is why we're going home and –"

She ducked under his arm, and before he could blink she had released her staff right in front of him. (Frankly he was stunned that she'd been able to remember the incantation in her state.)

"Sakura." He held out his hand, suddenly nervous. "Give me the staff."

Sakura laughed. "You know, you're supposed to be like this ninja guy."

"I am _not_ a ninja," he interjected, slightly indignant.

"Still," she mused, twirling her staff round in her hands. "You'd think you'd be able to catch one little girl."

"It's not catching you that's the problem, it's making you stay that way," he sighed. "And I'm not about to use force on you, am I?"

"Why not?"

Syaoran glowered. "You know why not."

"Because you _love_ me," Sakura sing-songed, waving the staff around happily.

"Yes," he sighed. "And if you love me, you'll hand your staff over and _come_._ Home._"

"Mmmm … okay!" she agreed, and Syaoran thanked the powers that be for their mercy.

"Just one quick spell first!"

Syaoran's eyes widened. "What? Sakura, no –"

She giggled, raising her staff as she flipped through her cards (where had she hidden them in that outfit, anyway?). "I think I'm gonna go flying –"

"Sakura, don't you dare!" he warned, panicking as she flicked a card out and struck it with her staff.

A series of tiny bullets of light suddenly shot out of her staff. Syaoran pulled Sakura to the ground with him, and the pair cowered in a puddle as the bullets ricocheted all around them, before eventually rebounding off into the night.

"That wasn't Fly," Sakura said in bemusement.

Syaoran pulled them both up, breathing a sigh of relief. "No, it wasn't," he agreed. "It was Shot." He quickly plucked the staff out of her hands as she gazed blankly after one of the little bullets, and began to lead her towards home as fast as he could.

"It's still raining, you know."

The corners of Syaoran's lips twitched slightly. "Yes, I know."

"If it's still raining in the morning," Sakura mused, "Can we go out and dance in it?"

Syaoran laughed. "Sakura, if you're in any state to even get out of bed in the morning, I'll throw on a raincoat and dance to any song you like."

"I'll hold you to that," Sakura promised, before jumping onto her boyfriend's back and finally letting him carry her home.

It was still raining the next morning. Unfortunately for Sakura, she couldn't remember Syaoran's promise – or anything that had happened after her pitiful performance in the drinking games.

**A/N:** Dedicated to anyone who has ever lost at Ring of Fire. In case you don't know the rules – you set a pint glass in the middle of the circle and as the game goes on everyone puts in bits of their own drinks. The loser gets to down the lot. In one go. And then try not to pass out

**Next chapter:** Wood


End file.
